


On This Cold December Night

by AWriting



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 12 Days of Winterhawk, Christmas Fluff, Christmas with the Avengers, Fluff, M/M, SO MUCH FLUFF, probably some smut too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-15
Updated: 2016-01-01
Packaged: 2018-05-06 21:51:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 7,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5432078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AWriting/pseuds/AWriting
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>12 Days of Winterhawk prompt fills</p><p>Bucky's first Christmas in the tower.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Tree

**Author's Note:**

> I'm doing madetobeworthy's 12 Days of Winterhawk prompts in order to insert some fluff into my writing amidst all the angst of Indefinitely Falling.  
> Going to be one continuing storyline but each chapter will fill the prompt for that day. Short updates. Unbeta'd  
> Title inspired by Michael Buble's song Cold December Night.

"Die Hard _is_ a Christmas movie!" The archer yelled from in the kitchen.

"I'm not arguing with that," the scientist's assistant (Darcy?) called back. "It's just not exactly a tree decorating movie, you know? We need something classic. White Christmas or Miracle on 34th Street or something."

"Why is Die Hard not good enough for you, Darce?" The archer said as he came back into the communal living room.

Steve had dragged Bucky down here for "team bonding." He had resisted the urge to point out that this was not his team and, therefore, he did not need to bond with them. He had only been living in the tower for a few weeks and had barely interacted with anyone so far. But that would've led to Steve giving him sad puppy dog eyes and he was not in the mood to deal with being guilt tripped.

The archer, to his surprise, plopped down next to him on the couch. He was handed a needle that had been threaded and his mind ran through the fastest ways to kill someone with it. Ignoring those thoughts, he silently took one of the pieces of freshly popped popcorn from the archer's bowl and speared it. The archer grinned at him in approval.

"A Christmas Story!" Was called out by the woman with the food name...uh. Potts. Pepper Potts.

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas," was suggested by the Black Widow. Natasha.

"You would want that one," Stark said. "I bet you identify so much with the Grinch."

"I just don't understand why he gives all the presents back," Natasha deadpanned. The archer threw a piece of popcorn at her. It hit her squarely in the forward.

"Now you spoiled it for Cap and Bucky!" The archer cried. "They haven't seen these movies, remember?"

"Yes, Clint, because the ending of the feel good Christmas movie is always so hard to predict," Darcy rolled her eyes over by the tree. Clint. Right. That was his name.

"Can we just pick something?" Sam asked. He was wearing reindeer antlers on a headband and a red nose and he looked utterly ridiculous. "I'd like to get on with the decorating already."

"Speak for yourself, Rudolph," Clint called over his shoulder. "Bucky and I have already started stringing some badass popcorn garland. You're all way behind."

Bucky stilled as he felt everyone's eyes shift to him. He had a mound of threaded popcorn on his lap and the bowl settled halfway on his lap and halfway on Clint's was almost empty. When he looked up, most people were looking at him in surprise, but Steve was grinning brightly. Bucky shifted his eyes back down to his lap silently and threaded another piece.

"Well, I vote for White Christmas," Darcy finally said after a few more moments of quiet and everyone looked away from him.

"Fine, fine," Stark said. "All in favor of White Christmas?"

Bucky felt an elbow press into his ribs and when he looked up, half the room was raising their hands.

"How about it, robocop?" Stark quirked an eyebrow at him. "You're the tie breaking vote."

"Uh, sure." Bucky said after a moment. Half the room cheered.

"You heard him, JARVIS!" Darcy said excitedly. "Queue up White Christmas."

"It would be my pleasure, Miss Darcy," the disembodied British voice said.

"Traitor. You were supposed to vote for Die Hard," Clint grumbled at his side but he was smiling teasingly when Bucky looked at him.

"I don't know any of these films," Bucky responded with a shrug.

"Well we are definitely introducing you to Die Hard at some point. And Elf. You gotta see Elf. It's just not Christmas without Die Hard and Elf."

Bucky went back to his threading as Clint continued to ramble and the sounds of the rest of the team evened out around him, everyone working on their assigned jobs for the tree as the movie began in the background.

It was actually pretty nice.


	2. Snowman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Snowman

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: I've never made a snowman.   
> All mistakes are my own.   
> Have a lovely day!

Bucky was not having a good day. He just needed some alone time so he figured he would head up to the roof. He wasn't technically supposed to leave the tower without one of the avengers but the roof was technically still the tower so it worked. He knew it had snowed the night before but as long as it wasn't currently snowing, it would be fine.

The sky was still pretty cloudy when he stepped out but it didn't seem to be snowing too much. There was a thick coat of white powder blanketing every surface of the roof. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, or as fresh as you could get in the middle of Manhattan, and looked around for the best perch.

"Aren't you cold?" Came from behind him and he tensed, muscles ready for a fight.

Clint was standing off to the side of the roof, bundled up in a thick black coat, a purple, wool beanie and gloves, and black pants and boots. His cheeks and the tip of his nose was pink with the cold and he was working on what appeared to be a snowman.

Bucky shrugged. He was only wearing jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt.

Clint shrugged back. "Guess it makes sense. Winter Soldier and all."

Bucky just stared at him for a moment as he packed some more snow into a tight ball and rolled it onto a larger one already set aside.

"Wanna help me make the SnowVengers?" Clint asked after a minute.

Bucky was surprised to find that he did want to help. Anything would be better than going back inside to deal with Steve trying to get him to talk about his feelings again.

"Sure," he said and made his way over to where Clint was finishing off the first snowman.

They spent a while just setting the snowmen up, making sure the snow was packed well and they would hold up at least for a while. Once they had enough, they gave everyone eyes and mouths and carrot noses and Clint had found a bunch of sticks from somewhere to use as arms. He must've been planning this for a while, Bucky thought.

That was confirmed when Clint pulled a box over that Bucky hadn't noticed with various props.

For his own snowman, Clint had a pair of purple sunglasses and a little toy boy and quiver.

"Snow-me is badass," Clint said before moving on.

He gave Steve's snowman a shield made out of cardboard and painted to look somewhat like the real one, though it looked like a three year old had done it. Tony's snowman got a big light bulb in the center of it's chest and a goatee made out of black tinsel. Sam got cardboard wings, goggles, and straps across his chest like he had when he wore his pack. Clint somehow managed to attach a pair of purple shorts to Bruce's-or the Hulk's, Bucky supposed. It was bigger than all the rest.- and then outlined abs in the snow.

"You have one snowman too many," Bucky realized.

"No, I don't," Clint responded but didn't add anything so Bucky just shrugged. Maybe there was an Avenger he didn't know about.

Clint pulled out a blonde wig and set it on what was apparently supposed to be Thor and gave him a regular-looking hammer. If Thor saw it, he'd probably be offended that something so mundane was put as an equivalent to Mjolnir. Then he pulled out a red wig and set it on Natasha's. Bucky rolled his eyes when Clint started reshaping the snow to make it look like she had cleavage. Last, he pulled out a medium length, dark brown wig and set it on the remaining snowman. He took one of the stick arms off and replaced it with an arm made of silver tins.

"Is that supposed to be me?" Bucky asked.

"Duh." Clint stepped back and admired his work, nodding once in satisfaction.

Bucky ignored the weird warm feeling in his chest. "Why don't the rest of you get wigs?"

Clint rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Don't tell, but I stole these wigs from Natasha's disguise box. And she doesn't have _guy_ wigs, you know?"

Bucky raised an eyebrow, looking down at Clint in amusement. "You saying I have girl hair?"

Clint sputtered. "That's not...you know...not what I meant, Bucky! I meant long hair and you know it, asshole."

Bucky just shook his head and smiled slightly. "Natasha is going to murder you if she finds out."

"I'm sure she'll find out," Clint said with a shrug. "She always does. I'm guessing silent treatment for a day or two."

"At least a week," Bucky countered. Clint looked at him with a mischievous smile.

"Wanna bet?" Bucky hesitated. He didn't know Natasha as well as Clint. But he did know how protective she was off her clothes and disguises. "Fine," he finally said. "Stakes?"

Clint thought for a moment with a serious expression. "I win, you have to make me hot chocolate and watch Die Hard with me. You win...I don't know. What do you want?"

"Um. I don't know either." Bucky had no idea what he wanted.

"Well, you're not going to win anyway so it doesn't matter," Clint responded, grinning. "But if by some miracle, you do win, you can just decide then. But you're not going to."

"Deal," Bucky said and they shook on it.

The two men contemplated the SnowVengers for a few more moments. Bucky noticed that Clint was starting to shiver and he pushed down the urge to wrap his arms around the other man.

"Thor definitely has girl hair," Bucky said.

Clint laughed and grinned at him. Bucky definitely wasn't feeling the cold. His insides were warm and fluttery.


	3. Snowball Fight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is late. My bad. I blame Star Wars.  
> I'm going to try to post two tomorrow to catch back up.

Everyone went out to Central Park the next day. It had snowed again and apparently the whole team had a bet going regarding snowball fights that needed to be settled. Bucky trudged along after them reluctantly.

When they got to the park, they found a decent open area without too many people milling about and started dividing into teams.

When Bucky asked why Natasha and Clint got to be team captains, Steve said, "if they're captains, there's zero chance of them ending up on the same team. Because if they end up on the same team, everybody dies."

Bucky raised an eyebrow in disbelief, but Steve's serious expression didn't change.

"No, really," he said. "They work together too well. It doesn't matter the game. It could be the whole team against them two and they'd still win."

"Well, they're fighting today anyway," Bucky pointed out. Steve's surprised face made him roll his eyes. "You didn't notice how she's not talking to him? It's because he took some of her wigs for the SnowVengers."

Steve looked at him like he'd grown a second head.

"It's a long story. But trust me. She's not happy with him right now."

"Whatever you say, Buck."

"Ladies first," Clint said at the front of the group.

Natasha just glared at him then said, "I choose Darcy."

Darcy whooped and went forward to stand next to Natasha, holding her hand out for a fist bump as she approached. Natasha obliged with a small smirk.

"I choose Bucky," Clint said to everyone's surprise. Bucky hadn't really planned on playing. But Steve nudged him forward with a smile so he went and stood by Clint who high-fived him with a grin.

The archer wasn't as bundled up as he had been the day before. Probably because the wind wasn't as bad in the park as it was on the roof of the tower. Also probably because he would need to be able to move and throw easily during the snowball fight and the thick jacket he had worn would've hindered his mobility. But he looked good, Bucky had to admit. The jacket he was wearing looked like maybe it was something SHIELD gave their operatives for missions in cold places and it fit snugly to his frame, showing off his broad shoulders. He had the same purple beanie on, but it was pulled back farther so there wasn't any chance of it obscuring his vision so his bright blue eyes were on full display.

"Steve," Natasha said.

"Sam."

"Rhodey."

"Thor."

"Tony."

"That leaves you with us, Jane."

Jane shrugged at being the last person to be picked. In a group of superheroes, it probably wasn't that surprising.

"My lady Jane is a great warrior," Thor assured Clint.

So in the end it was Clint, Bucky, Sam, Thor, and Jane against Natasha, Darcy, Steve, Rhodey, and Tony.

Clint quickly picked out a home base for them by the tree line and both teams were given ten minutes to build whatever fortifications they wanted. Bucky wasn't really sure what the rules of this game we're going to be, or if there were any rules at all, but he piled the snow up to form a barrier alongside the rest of his team.

It took about 5 minutes after Bruce called go for the game to descend into total chaos. Team members turning on team members, snow being tossed haphazardly at anything that moved, people being tackled to the ground everywhere you looked. Bucky made his way over to where Bruce was standing and watched the chaos from a distance.

"I see why you volunteer to officiate," Bucky said as he watched Clint stuff some snow down the back of Darcy's shirt and run away cackling.

Bruce smiled lightly at him. "I'm getting too old for this sort of stuff. Better to let them have their fun."

"Me too," Bucky agreed.

"You're fitting in just fine," Bruce said reassuringly.

Bucky shrugged and opened his mouth to respond when a snowball hit the side of his face. He turned to see Clint standing a little ways away. The archer grinned and winked at him before running back into the fray.

"I don't know, Bruce," Bucky said, nonchalantly squatting down and beginning to pull some snow together. He took his time rolling it together. "Maybe you're right."

He picked up the tightly packed, impressively large snowball that he'd just made and watched carefully for his target. The blonde was currently being pursued by both Sam and Rhodey across the open area. Bucky pulled his arm back and aimed carefully, tracking Clint's speed and movement while he was distracted by the other men following him.

Then he let the snowball fly.

It hit Clint square in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Bucky grinned. Clint popped back up out of the snow a minute later, gaping at Bucky so he saluted the archer lazily.

"You'll pay for that, Barnes!" Clint yelled just as Sam and Rhodey descended on him.

Bruce laughed, patting Bucky's shoulder, but was called away to "officiate" by Tony who was claiming Darcy had bit him. Steve took his place, clapping Bucky on the shoulder and smiling brightly.

"I think someone has a crush on you, Buck," Steve said.

"What?" Bucky's eyebrows shot up I surprise.

"It's pretty obvious." Steve nudged him with an elbow.

"Steve, who are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about Clint, dumbass." Steve rolled his eyes. "He likes you."

"Ha ha, Steve. Very funny."

"I'm not joking, Buck."

Bucky scowled at Steve and shook his head. "Whatever, man."

He watched as Clint fought off Sam and Rhodey with the help of Thor.

It took about an hour for everyone to get worn out enough to agree to head back to the tower for some hot chocolate. Bucky wasn't sure who won the game or if the bet was settled, but Clint seemed to have forgotten his promise to get Bucky back for the snowball to the chest.

 

Later that night, seeking some solitude, Bucky headed up to the roof. When he opened the door, what seemed like a mountain of snow descended on top of him. Clint howled with laughter from above him.


	4. Ice skating

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super short update today but uber fluffy.   
> Got called in to work unexpectedly so I didn't get a chance to catch up on the days. Hopefully tomorrow? No promises.

"I brought you a Santa hat."

Bucky blinked, looking from the hat in Clint's hand back to his face. "Why?"

"Because it's the holidays. And Santa hats are cool." Clint was wearing a Christmas tree hat with actual twinkling lights on it. He looked stupid and adorable. He held the Santa hat out to Bucky. "It's either this one or the elf hat."

Clint rummaged in his bag and pulled out another hat that was green and white striped with elf ears attached to the bottom. Bucky snatched the Santa hat out of Clint's hand. The archer beamed at him and tossed the elf hat at Steve.

"Here you go, Cap," he said before heading towards the rest of the team who were tying their skates.

Steve's face was a mixture of amusement, exasperation, and "I told you so," and Bucky ignored him purposefully, tugging the Santa hat down over his head.

When they approached where the team was sitting, Natasha looped her arm through Bucky's. She was wearing a Santa hat too, but it was glittery all over. "I guess this makes you the Mr. Claus to my Mrs."

Bucky grumbled noncommittally and sat to pull on his own skates. The rink was large and, of course, Tony had rented it out for their private use. The zamboni had just made a round so the ice was fresh and shimmery.

Almost everyone was out on the ice before Bucky had finished lacing up his skates. He took his time on purpose. He felt kind of ridiculous. There were people who wanted him locked up forever for the crimes he committed as the Winter Soldier and here he was wearing a Santa hat and ice skating like he didn't have a care in the world. He sighed heavily and watched as Steve and Thor pulled Darcy as fast as they could across the ice while she shrieked in delight.

Suddenly Clint was there next to him, plopping down on the bench. "Fancy meetin' you here."

"Well you wouldn't have," Bucky said with a smirk. "But some asshole archer showed up at my door threatening to haunt our vents for weeks if I didn't come."

"Sounds like he wanted you to have some fun," Clint responded.

"This isn't fun," Bucky said, waving his hand towards the ice. "This is torture."

Clint did his best to look shocked and offended but it only lasted a second before he broke out in another grin. "Maybe you just haven't done it right before."

"And how do you ice skate right?" Bucky asked, raising an eyebrow at the other man.

He was rather surprised to see Clint turn bright red and look back at the rink to avoid Bucky's eyes. "Oh, you know, you gotta go with someone special. Hold hands and skate around and fall a couple of times and just make idiots out of yourselves."

"Hmmm," Bucky pretender to ponder his statement. "I don't think I really understand what you mean." He stood, a little wobbly for a second on the skates, but turned once he got his balance and held a hand out towards the archer. "I guess you'll have to show me."

Clint blinked, looking from his hand to his face and back as a shy smile spread across his face.

"I think I can do that," Clint finally said as he stood, taking Bucky's hand in his own and pulling Bucky towards the rink.

Steve winked at Bucky from the other side of the ice.


	5. Shopping

For the first time all week, the team had decided to lounge around the tower for the day. Tony and Steve had some PR things to do but everyone else took it easy. Bucky spent most of the day in the gym or Steve's apartment lost in the dark hole that is Wikipedia.

Around dinner time, he finally decided to seek some human interaction and made his way to the communal floor.

He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face when he saw Clint sitting on the couch with a starkpad in hand. The archer was dressed super casually in a pair of sweatpants and a ratty tshirt, and his hair way sticking up at every angle possible.

Bucky slipped onto the couch next to him, sitting close so he could see what was on the starkpad. "What are you doing?" Bucky asked.

"Christmas shopping," Clint replied, keeping his focus on the tablet but leaning towards Bucky slightly in a seemingly unconscious move.

"On a computer?"

Clint looked up in surprise. "You haven't been introduced to the glory of online shopping?"

"Um, no. I guess not," Bucky responded, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, we are going to fix that. It's about time to learned about Amazon." Clint held the tablet out between them and Bucky used it as an excuse to scoot a little closer, resting his arm on the back of the couch behind Clint.

Just as Clint was about to say something else, Natasha strode into the room and stopped directly in front of them. She looked straight at Clint and said, "if you ever touch my disguise closet again, I will rip every single one of your fingernails off."

"Understood," Clint said, smiling. Bucky, personally, was terrified.

As soon as Natasha left the room, Clint turned to Bucky with a triumphant smile. "I win!"

"What? No, you don't," Bucky protested. "You said a day or two. That was three days."

Clint stuck his lower lip out in a ridiculous pout. "But you said at least a week. So you didn't win either."

Bucky bit his lip. "Well maybe we both win."

"What do we win?" Clint asked.

Bucky wanted to say a kiss. God, he really wanted to say a kiss. But when he opened his mouth to speak, he chickened out. "How about I'll watch Die Hard with you, but you have to make the hot chocolate?"

Clint smiled, but Bucky could've sworn he saw disappointment flash in Clint's eyes.

"I think I can do that," Clint said.

"I want the good stuff though." Bucky poked Clint's side playfully. "None of that instant stuff."

"God, you're demanding," Clint poked him back.

"Stop flirting and get a room already," Tony said as he and Steve stepped off the elevator. Clint cleared his throat and looked down at the tablet in his hand again.

"Fuck you, Tony," Bucky said, but without any heat.

Steve plopped down on the couch across from them and asked, "What are we doing?"

"Teaching Bucky how to online shop," Clint responded, apparently recovered from his embarrassment.

Tony practically squealed in delight, leaning over the back of the couch behind them and started pushing things on the tablet while babbling about old people and Amazon prime. Bucky rolled his eyes and leaned back against the couch. At least he kind of got a date out of that bet even if he didn't technically win.


	6. Mall Santa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick drabble because I'm trying not to get even more behind on days than I am.

"They're headed into Macy's!" Steve yelled over the comms just as one of the Doombots hurdled through the glass doors, shattering it into a million pieces.

"I got 'em," Clint said, repelling down from the roof he was on a few buildings over. He had to duck a few blasts as he ran down the street, but pretty soon he stepped inside, his bow at the ready.

The department store was quiet. All civilians had been evacuated from the area as soon as the fighting started. Clint cursed his hearing aids for not picking up the mechanical whirring of the doombot he knew was hidden somewhere in the store.

Something crashed over by the Santa display, so Clint turned that direction, eyes sweeping the area. There was movement behind the stand. He could see the curtains rustling just a bit and the light fluctuating underneath them as if something was moving. His instincts were telling him something was off so he didn't loose the arrow that his fingers were itching to let fly. He approached cautiously, his boots making almost no noise on the floor. When he got close enough, he kicked out in a sudden move with one foot. It was met with a loud "oof" and someone coughing. Clint grabbed the curtain and pulled it back, revealing a fat man in a red suit.

"What the hell, man?" Clint hissed, letting his bow drop so it wasn't pointed at the man's protruding belly. "You're not supposed to be here."

"Look," the man began. He was clearly terrified. His fake beard was hanging sideways on his face and he clutched his hat tightly in his hands. "I don't even know what's going on. I went on break and when I came back, everyone was gone and then this...thing, robot thing came through the door..."

Just then a loud screech echoed through the cavernous building. Clint whipped in time to see the doombot launch from itself down at him from the ceiling. It was too late. Clint was fast but he wasn't that fast and there was no way he could get his arrow back in position in time.

He dove for the pudgy man, his momentum carrying them through the back of the set. Clint came up on one knee, bow at the ready in front of him, but he was greeted with a downed robot and Bucky standing over it.

"You're not supposed to be here either!"

"Good thing I am," Bucky said as he fired a few shots into the robots main mechanism. "Or you'd be dead. And then we'd all be sad."

Clint grinned and stepped towards Bucky. "Yeah? You'd be sad if I got smashed by a doombot?"

Bucky shrugged, smirking. "For at least a day or two."

Clint scoffed. "Whatever. You'd be crushed and you know it."

Bucky opened his mouth to respond, but a clambering noise behind Clint caught their attention. The mall Santa climbed out of the rubble that was Santa's wonderland and said, "Can you two stop flirting for half a minute and get me the fuck out of here?"

Just then, Steve asked Clint for a report over the comms. Clint rolled his eyes, flashed a grin at Bucky, and went back into battle mode.


	7. Blizzard

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops. I accidentally did the angst. Just a teensy bit. Oh well. It was bound to happen what with Winterhawk being Winterhawk.

Bucky hadn't seen snow this thick since the last time he'd been in Siberia. New York was buried in white powder and almost everything was shutting down bit by bit as people retreated to their homes to wait it out.

Most of the team was gathered on the communal floor because Bruce had made a delicious spicy soup to keep them warm. Clint was the only one who hadn't shown up and Bucky tried to hide his disappointment. He sat back and watched the team interact around him. Steve and Sam were flirting loudly. Pepper and Tony had claimed one of the big chairs and were curled together around their soup bowls. Jane and Thor were laughing at Darcy and Natasha who were throwing marshmallows into each other's mouths. The reward for making it was a kiss. Bucky was feeling very lonely.

He caught Bruce's eye from where the man was standing by the bar. They shared a commiserating smile but then Bruce got a thoughtful look on his face and disappeared into the kitchen again. Reemerging with an extra bowl of soup, Bruce approached Bucky.

"Clint's got a cold," he said without any preamble. "I was going to take him some soup. But maybe you want to do it instead?"

Bucky was a bit taken aback. They hadn't exactly made a secret of their flirtation but he hadn't expected the team to encourage it. Bruce gave him a knowing smile and pushed the bowl into his hands. Bucky nodded and took the bowl, an idea sprouting in his mind.

He stopped by the kitchen for a few ingredients and then made his way to Clint's apartment. The archer opened the door after a few knocks looking absolutely miserable with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. "Aw, Buck, no. Didn't want you to see me like this."

"Well, I think I owe you a movie, right?" Bucky smiled and held out the soup. "You eat this and I'll make the hot chocolate."

Clint looked conflicted, but then he opened up the door and let Bucky in.

"I was supposed to make the hot chocolate," Clint said, pulling himself up on the counter.

"You still owe me then," Bucky responded as he got the stove going. They fell into a comfortable silence as Clint ate his soup and Bucky prepared the hot chocolate. Bucky let a small smile settle on his face and every once in a while he would glance over at Clint to find the man watching him carefully.

Once he was done, Clint set the bowl aside and pulled the blanket tight around his shoulders again. Bucky poured two steaming mugs full of hot chocolate and handed one to Clint, stepping in between Clint's legs and resting his elbows lightly on Clint's thighs. He felt bolder with just the two of them in the room for some reason.

Clint smiled down at him and sipped the hot chocolate without saying anything. But then he started coughing. A wet, full-body, rasping cough that reminded Bucky of nights spent listening to Steve cough. He set his mug down, laid both of his hands on Clint's chest, and said, "I used to rub Steve's chest when he got coughs like this."

Clint only hummed in response, and Bucky felt the vibration under his hands. Then it was like he noticed his metal hand for the first time again and the disgust washed over him so he dropped his hands, clenching his fists and laying them on either side of Clint's hips.

Clint was looking down into his drink with a thoughtful look on his face. After a minute he asked, "where you and Steve...you know..."

"Together?" Bucky filled in. Clint nodded so Bucky said, "No. We've never been anything more than friends. Brothers. That's it."

"Good," Clint responded with a smile small, knocking his foot lightly against Bucky's thigh, just before another cough took over.

Bucky frowned and waited it out. He wanted to help but was too scared of himself to do it. Too scared of the monster they'd made him to trust himself with someone as good as Clint. But too selfish to walk away.

"C'mon," he said. "We've got a movie to watch, right?"

Clint hopped down from the counter and padded along after him towards the couch. They asked JARVIS to start the movie and just as it started, Clint leaned over, laying out on the couch and resting his head on Bucky's lap.

Bucky froze for a moment. When Clint's blanket slipped, Bucky reached out and tucked it more securely around him. Then with a deep breath, he set his flesh hand on Clint's hair and ran his fingers through it gently. Clint sighed and leaned back a bit into the touch, his shoulders relaxing even more. There was a blizzard outside but Bucky couldn't care less.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone is interested, the next chapter of Indefinitely Falling is pretty much definitely going to be a day or two late because holidays and stuff. I promise to not keep you waiting too long.


	8. Stockings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes. I am planning on finishing this. Sorry about the wait. Holidays just ended up being way busier than I expected. Enjoy, my loves!

Despite Steve's assurance that no one would freak out if Bucky went on the annual Avengers Christmas trip to the children's hospital, he decided to stay behind. Clint was still sick and had been pretty upset about not being able to go. But the archer knew that a cold could be the difference between life and death for some of these kids, so he understood why he had to stay behind. Bucky decided he'd rather stay with a moping Clint than deal with the terrified masses if he turned up with his blank stare and metal arm.

  
He knew that one of the big things that the Avengers did with the kids was holiday crafts, so he snagged a few of the blank stockings and some of the art supplies from the box before Happy loaded them into the car. Natasha was the only one who saw him do it and she just smiled when he shrugged in a noncommittal way. He knew that she knew why he was doing it.

  
As soon as the rest of the team was off to the hospital, Bucky took the elevator to Clint's apartment. He hid the supplies behind his back before knocking lightly. When Clint answered the door, Bucky found him pretty much the same as the day before. With a blanket wrapped around his shoulders, looking like he'd just gotten out of bed.

  
"You didn't go with them?" Clint asked as he stepped aside to let Bucky in.

  
"Nah," Bucky said. "I've got something for you."

  
Clint raised an eyebrow and sniffled. "What is it?"

  
"Well, I might not be as cute as the hospital kids." Bucky brought the supplies out from behind his back with a smile. "But I thought doing Christmas shit with me might be a decent consolation prize."

  
Clint's face lit up when he saw the things in Bucky's hands. "I don't know, Buck," the archer said. "You're pretty damn cute when you want to be."

They spent the rest of the afternoon decorating stockings for each other and watching Christmas movies. Clint put big red stars next to Bucky's name at the top and managed to put pretty decent representations of the SnowVengers on the main part of the stocking with glitter glue. Bucky drew a big bow and arrow on Clint's stocking and then a bunch of little snowflakes.

They ended their afternoon cuddled on the couch with hot apple cider and White Christmas playing.


	9. Mistletoe

Clint was pretty much back to normal the next day when it came to his cold. There was still some lingering sniffles, but nothing to keep him laid up in his bed all day. So when he woke up, he decided to meander down to the kitchen to find some food.

  
His mind had been rather preoccupied all morning, trying to puzzle out what was happening between him and Bucky. They'd spent a lot of time together over the last few days, but Clint had no idea what that meant. Did Bucky like him back? Was Bucky just bored? Was it just that he felt bad that Clint was sick and alone? Or did it not mean anything at all? Had he made it all up in the haze of sickness?

  
He hoped that he would get a few minutes with Natasha today to see what her take on it all was. He really needed a second opinion before he interacted with Bucky again.

  
That plan was shot to hell when the elevator opened and Bucky was standing inside of it.

  
"Hey," Bucky said with a smile as Clint stepped hesitantly inside the elevator. "Feeling better?"

  
"Uh, yeah," Clint responded, stuffing his hands in his pockets and leaning against the wall farthest from the other man. "Pretty much."

  
His voice was still rough from all the coughing he'd been doing over the last few days, but he hoped Bucky didn't notice.

  
"Good," Bucky said, winking at him.

  
Clint just barely held in a groan. This man was going to be the death of him. Who went around winking at people like that?

  
Well, Clint actually winked at people a lot. But in a friendly way. He was one hundred percent positive it didn't look nearly as sexy when he did it as when Bucky did it.

  
It was just unfair.

  
The elevator doors whooshed open then, and Clint decided it was best to make a hasty exit. Bucky stepped out right behind him, and they didn't make it another step before they were greeted with Tony cackling loudly.

  
"Mistletoe, bitches!" Tony called from by the bar where he held a controller in his hands.

  
Clint looked up and felt the blood drain from his face in horror when he saw the small drone Tony was controlling hovering above them with a small sprig of mistletoe hanging from it.

  
Clint sputtered, attempting to find an excuse to not do it. Not that he didn't want to kiss Bucky. He really, really did. But not like this. With everyone watching and Bucky forced into it by a stupid tradition.  
But before he could form any actual words, he felt a hand on his shoulder, turning him slightly. Then a soft pair of lips pushed against his in a firm, chaste kiss, and Clint was pretty sure he had died and gone to heaven.

  
Just like that, it was over, and Bucky pulled back. His hand was still on Clint's shoulder and he was watching Clint carefully.

  
Clint knew he must look like an idiot. Mouth parted just slightly, eyes wide and dreamy. But he was drowning in Bucky's blue eyes and couldn't figure out how to float.  
Then someone started clapping. Clint didn't even have time to figure out who it was before Bucky was stammering about needing something from his room and disappearing into the elevator again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I started a tumblr for my writing. I'm going to be taking prompts and stuff. If I could figure out how to link it, I would but I'm pretty much computer illiterate. So look me up, please. awrites.tumblr.com.


	10. Holiday Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on tumblr now at awrites.tumblr.com. Come find me, my loves.

Clint spent the night out in BedStuy because he's a coward. He knew he would have to face Bucky eventually, but he was going to put it off as long as possible.  
What happened the day before had been humiliating. He didn't even know why. He wasn't even sure what had happened between them after the kiss. But it was humiliating anyway. So right after Bucky had run away, he had run too. All the way to the tiny little apartment he never got to spend much time in anymore.

  
He woke up that morning (okay, okay, that afternoon) to a banging on his door. He wasn't entirely surprised to see Natasha standing on the other side, but he was surprised by the suit bag hanging over her arm.

  
"You forgot, didn't you?" She asked.

  
"Um, apparently I did." He stepped back to let her in the apartment.

  
"Stark's party is tonight," she informed him, laying the suit carefully over the back of his couch. "And you have to be there."

  
"Ah, shit. What time?" He ran a hand over his two-day-old stubble. This was not going to help his plan to avoid a certain someone.

  
"No later than eight." She whisked back by him, but stopped just outside the door. "I'll send a car for you at seven, just to be safe."

  
"You don't have to do that," he said, a whine creeping into his voice. He wasn't a child who needed to be herded to the right places and the right times.

  
"I'm not taking the chance that your drama with Barnes scares you away." She fixed a penetrating glare on him. "If I have to suffer through this party, so do you. Also, you're being stupid about Barnes."

  
"Love you too, Tash," he called sarcastically after her as she walked away. So much for her shedding any light on the situation.

  
This was definitely not going to go well.

  
He was ready to go when the car got there though every second getting closer to the tower just built on the anxiety already rolling around in his stomach. Chances were that Bucky wouldn't even come down for the party. He was still pretty convinced that everyone hated him. So maybe Clint wouldn't even have to see him.

  
The annoying part was that Clint really wanted to see him. If only they could erase yesterday and the awkwardness and uncertainty that came from what happened and start over. He wanted to just hang out and watch a Christmas movie on his couch and not have to stress about saying or doing the right thing.

  
The car pulled up to the tower way too soon for his liking, but he climbed out and put on a brave face. Light bulbs were flashing along the red carpet that led up to the front entrance which he hurried up without talking to anyone. He patted Cap on the shoulder as he walked by where Steve was talking to some of the press. Steve looked like he almost called out to Clint, but then got distracted by a question from one of the reporters. Clint was incredibly grateful.

  
He managed to avoid the rest of the team for almost a whole hour, drinking his way through four or five beers at the same time. Bucky hadn't come down for the party, just like Clint had guessed which had him feeling relieved and disappointed at the same time. He was beginning to think he might make it out of this night unscathed when Steve finally cornered him.

  
"You need to talk to him," Cap said.

  
"I don't think he wants to talk to me," Clint responded, taking a long drink from his bottle.

  
"Don't be ridiculous." Steve had crossed his arms over his broad chest and was doing his Cap voice, so Clint decided to cut him off before he got started on whatever lecture he had planned.

  
"If he wanted to talk to me, he wouldn't have run away yesterday."

  
Steve rolled his eyes dramatically. "Bucky always freaks out when things like this happen. It wasn't anything you did and it wasn't because he didn't want it to happen."

  
Clint eyed Steve curiously. "What do you mean?"

  
Steve sighed. "Even back in our day, Buck could flirt with the best of them, but whenever things got more serious with someone he actually cared about, he freaked and ran away. It was always up to the other person to track him down. So if you really want to be with him, that's what you'll have to do."

  
Steve reached out and squeezed Clint's shoulder before leaving Clint to contemplate what he had said.  
Clint was not emotionally mature enough for this shit. Yes, he wanted to be with Bucky. He was one hundred percent positive about that. But how did Steve know Bucky even wanted to be with him? What if Bucky freaked out for an entirely different reason? Just because Bucky reacted to things one way back in the day didn't mean that he would do the same thing now. He wasn't the same man as he had been. There was a decent chance that Steve had no idea what he was talking about.

  
On the other hand, if Steve was right...well, then Clint would have to be an idiot to not confront Bucky. If Steve was right...Clint's heart fluttered in anticipation.  
His heart was a traitorous piece of shit.

  
Natasha caught his eye across the dance floor and nodded towards the bank of elevators as if she knew exactly what was going through his mind. Which she probably did.

  
Clint sighed and nodded back, setting his beer down and turning towards the elevators. He'd be an idiot to not take the chance.  
He had JARVIS call their private elevator and climbed on when the doors opened.

  
"Take me to Bucky's apartment," he told the AI.

  
"If you are looking for Sergeant Barnes, I suggest trying the gym," JARVIS responded.

  
"Oh. Take me there then." Clint pulled at his tie to loosen it and ran a hand through his hair, not even bothering to fix the way it stood up in all directions after.

  
The gym was filled with the sound of fists hitting a bag, the slap of flesh and metal on canvas. Clint watched for a minute, admiring the smooth lines of Bucky's clenched arm and back muscles and the controlled strength in them.  
It only took about a minute for Bucky to realize he wasn't alone. His instincts kicking in as Clint watched. The change was visible, his muscles going from just clenched to tense, his blows to the bag slowing.

  
He turned towards Clint with a guarded look on his face.

  
"Hey," Clint said. Because he was an idiot and couldn't think of anything better. His brain wasn't functioning now that Bucky was facing him, sweaty and perfect looking.

  
The corner of Bucky's mouth quirked up. "Hey."

  
"So, uh," Clint scratched the back of his head. "There's a party going on downstairs."

  
"Not really my scene," Bucky responded as he started to unwind the tape from his hands.

  
"Yeah, no. Me neither." Clint cleared his throat awkwardly, his eyes dragging around the gym and looking anywhere but at Bucky. "Would rather hang out with you."

  
Bucky frowned. "Why?"

  
Clint's mouth opened then closed then opened again as he searched for a response. "Because I like you."

  
"You do?" Bucky sounded incredulous, but he had turned away from Clint to drop his gear into his gym bag.

  
"Thought I made that pretty obvious," Clint stuffed his hands in his pockets and chuckled awkwardly. God, he was so horrible at this.

  
Bucky turned back to him, his hesitant, contemplative face slowly being displaced by a determination. He strode forward confidently for a few steps until he was directly in front of Clint. He reached out and took Clint's tie between two metal fingers, running them up and down the smooth material.

  
"I think I used to be bad at this," Bucky said, his eyes fixed on his fingers as they moved.

  
"I'm still bad at this," Clint said. He didn't have time to be embarrassed at how breathy and desperate it sounded. Bucky chuckled and tightened his grip on Clint's tie and tugged him forward so that their foreheads rested together.

  
"Okay, but I'm going try to be better," Bucky said. His hands slipped down to rest on Clint's hips and he bumped their noses together lightly. "'Cause I really want this."

  
Clint swallowed and brought one hand up to rest on Bucky's chest. "Me too."

  
"Okay, good."

  
"Good."

  
They both had stupid smiles on their faces when Bucky finally closed the distance between their lips. The kiss was sweet, a slow, gentle slide that Clint couldn't help but smile into. He was happy. He was so goddamn happy.

  
Thank god, Steve knew what he was talking about.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Happy Holidays!


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